Sequentially actuated mating hopper doors



May 28, 1968 e. a. DOREY SEQUENTIALLY AC'IUATED MATING HOPPER DOORS 3Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 11, 1965 INVENTOR May 28, 1968 G. B. DOREYSEQUENTIALLY ACTUATED MATING HOPPER DOORS 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct.11, 1965 R m m m May 28, 1968 I G. B. DOREY 3,385,231

SEQUENTIALLY ACTUATED MATING HOPPER DOORS Filed Oct. 11, 1965 3Sheets-Sheet 5 N y csxo United States Patent 3,385,231 SEQUENTIALLYACTUATED MATING HOPPER DOORS George B. Dorey, Westmonnt, Quebec, Canada,assignor to Continental Transport Appliances Limited, Montreal, Quebec,Canada, a corporation of Canada Filed Oct. 11, 1965, Ser. No. 494,397 8Claims. (Cl. 105-250) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An operating mechanismfor paired hopper doors of railway hopper cars in which a windingmechanism is connected at one end to a rotatable shaft. The other end ofthe mechanism carries an equalizer bar with arms of unequal lengthshaving two links connected to it, one at each end of the bar and eachlink is connected to a hopper door. The linkage is so constructed thatwhen the shaft is turned, the mechanism winds about the shaft and closesthe doors, one door closing before the other so that its edge mayoverlap the edge of the first closed door.

The invention provides for the employment of winding linkage mechanismincorporatin an unbalancing equalizer whereby the overlapped door willbe lifted to closed position in advance of the overlapping door andprovision made for the latter to overtake the overlapped door towardsthe end of the lifting operation. The improvement contemplates formingthe conventional type of equalizer bar with arms of unequal length andconnecting the longer of the arms with the overlapping door, therebycausing the latter to trail behind the other door and overtake it onlyat the close of the door lifting movement.

The invention further resides in features of construction related tostop means for limiting swinging movernent of the equalizer.

For further comprehension of the invention reference may be had to theaccompanying drawings wherein,

FIGURE 1 is an elevational transverse sectional view taken through thelower portion of a hopper car showing in full lines the doors in closedposition and indicating by conventional dot and dash lines the doors inopened position.

FIGURE 2 is a fractional transverse sectional view similar to FIGURE 1except that the doors are shown in partially closed position.

FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 2 except that the doors are shownwith the overlapped door in fully closed position and the overlappindoor in trailing position.

FIGURE 4 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view taken on a line 4-4of FIGURE 1.

Referring to the drawings wherein the improved operating mechanism isshown as applied to a railway hopper car adapted for discharge of ladingbetween the rails -10 and the truck parts are conventionally indicatedby the wheels 11--11. The body of the car is shown as includinglongitudinally extending side members 12-12 with downwardly inwardlyconverging sloping side floor walls 1313 which meet with transverselyextending Walls 1414 and 1515 to form a pair of hoppers 16. The Walls1414 combine to form a box-like or hood-like structure extendingtransversely of the car. The walls 14-14 slope downwardly to merge intovertical wall sections 1717 which constitute one of the end walls of thehoppers 16. Similarly the sloping end walls 15-15 merge into verticalextending wall sections 18.

"ice

The lower portion of the sloping walls 13 are reinforced by angle-shapedmembers 19 formed with a bulb portion 20 reinforcing the lower marginsof the sloping side walls. The lower margins of the end wall sections 17and 18 are reinforced with angle shaped members 21 which preferably joinwith the members 19 to form a framing structure around the dischargeopening.

The openings are adapted to be closed by oppositely facing swinging doorsections 23 and 24 which are pivotally mounted at 25 on hinge brackets26 which in turn are carried by the framing members 19. The doorsections 23 and 24 are flanged upwardly as indicated at 27 to form athree-sided pan-shaped structure. The doors are adapted to meet inclosed position in overlapping relation and to this end the overlappingdoor 23 is formed with an overlapping extension 28 adapted to underliethe overlapped door when said doors are in closed position. The doorsare preferably arranged to slope downwardly from their pivot-a1 axeswhen in closed position thereby disposing the overlapping extension 28at an upwardly extending angle when the doors are in closed position asseen in FIGURE 1.

The doors are operated by a rotatable operating shaft 29 housed in thetransverse hood structure and mounted in bearings 30 and 31. The shaftwhich is preferably of noncircular section is fitted at each bearingwith a circularly-shaped sleeve 32 to provide a circularly shapedjournal. The door sections adjacent their swinging ends arelongitudinally united by beam members 33 which in preferred form includea pair of channel shaped members united by a cover plate 34. Thebeamsare provided with screwthreaded U shaped bolts 35 secured byscrewthreaded nuts 36 which in turn are retained against lengthwisedisplacement by angle-shaped brackets 37.

Connecting the shaft 29 and doors is a winding linkage mechanismassembly generally indicated by the reference 38 and wound around a hubmember 39 nonrotatably mounted on the shaft and having a link 40pivotally connected at 41 with a hook shaped hanger 42. The hanger 42 isformed with a depending shank portion 43 having a pair of jaws 44-44between which an equalizing bar 45 is inserted and pivotally unitedtherewith by a pivot 46.

The equalizing bar 45 is formed with oppositely extending arms ofdifferent lengths as indicated at 47 and 48 respectively to connect withthe respective doors 23 and 24, by means of connections as indicated at49 and 50 respectively. The longer of the arms 47 connecting as it doeswith the overlapping doors 23 operates to produce an overbalancedcondition which results in the overlapping door opening to a greaterextent than the facing door. The extent of the overbalanced movement islimited by means of abutment means 51 on the hanger making contact withthe upper surface 52 of the short arm 48.

With the doors in open position, as seen by conventional dot and dashlines in FIGURE 1, it will be noted that the overlapping door 23 isopened to a greater extent than the companion door by reason of theunbalanced condition introduced by the unequal equalizer arms, to theextent limited by the abutments 51 and 52. Upon winding movement of thelinkage to lift the doors it will be noted that the overlapping doortrails behind the companion door as seen by reference to FIGURE 2. Thetrailing condition is maintained until the overlapped door reaches finalclosed position and abuts the lower edge 53 of the hopper vertical wallsas shown in FIG- URE 4 whereupon the longer equalizer arm 47 is swungupwardly by the winding action of the linkage mechanism to bring theoverlapping door to full closed position.

The shaft may be rotated by any of the conventional types of lever, pawland ratchet mechanisms (not shown) fitted to the ends of the shaft.

What is claimed as new is:

1. In a railway car having an opening for discharge of lading andoppositely swinging doors for closing the opening adapted to meet inoverlapping relation when in closed position, operating mechanism forlifting the doors to closed positon with the overlapped door in advanceof the overlapping door comprising:

(a) a rotatable shaft,

(b) linkage mechanism mounted on and adapted to be wound around theshaft,

(c) an equalizer pivotally mounted on the linkage mechanism and havingarms of unequal lengths ex tending in opposite directions from saidpivotal mounting,

(d) a connection between the end of one arm and a door, and a connectionbetween the end of the other arm and other door,

(e) the connection with the overlapping door being with the longer armwhereby to provide a greater opening swing of said door in relation tothe overlapped door to effect closing movement of the latter door inadvance of the overlapping door when said linkage mechanism is wound onsaid shaft.

2. The invention set forth in claim 1 wherein interengaging abutmetnsare provided on the linkage and equalizer for limiting relative swingingmovement between said linkage and equalizer to maintain the saidrelation between the respective doors throughout the major extent ofdoor liftin movement.

3. The invention set forth in claim 2 wherein stop means limit upwardmovement of the overlapped door to provide overtaking closing movementof the overlapping door incidental to upward swinging movement of thelonger equalizer arm about its pivotal connection with the linkage.

4. The combination of claim 1, in which the linkage mechanism consistsof an articulated means having one end axially secured to said shaft andthe other end pivotally mounted on said equalizer between the ends ofits arms.

5. The combination of claim 1, in which the mounting of the linkagemechanism on said shaft is upwardly spaced from the pivotal mounting ofthe equalizer on the linkage mechanism.

6. The combination of claim 1, in which said shaft is rotatably mountedon an axis extending transversely of the hinge axes of the doors.

7. The combination of claim 1, in which the equalizer is a rigid bar.

8. The combination of claim 1, in which the railway car is a hopper carand the said operating mechanism is contained in a box-like enclosureextending transversely of the hopper car between hoppers, said enclosurebeing formed by the walls of the hoppers.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 605,620 6/1898 Acklin 214-60722,299 3/1903 Hansen 105-290 X 979,488 12/1910 Heberling 298-371,064,448 6/1913 Daniels 298-33 1,765,519 6/1930 Zimmer 105290 X ARTHURL. LA POINT, Primary Examiner.

H. BELTRAN, Assistant Examiner.

